Example in my breed: People are starting to breed bigger and bigger (along with longer necks). Someone mentioned that the standard should be changed to reflect if more and more breeders are going to aim for these things.

I don't think the standard needs to be changed. I think breeders need to step back, look at the standard and the purpose of their dogs and then reevaluate their breeding practices if their stock is getting so far off standard that they feel they need to change it.

I don't think the standard needs to be changed. I think breeders need to step back, look at the standard and the purpose of their dogs and then reevaluate their breeding practices if their stock is getting so far off standard that they feel they need to change it.

All that was running through my mind was "What... the..." *blink* The problem is the vast majority of Westies ARE getting bigger and bigger and once in awhile a small one (who, mind you is NOT small, but well within the standard) will pop up. This year when I was in the states at a specialty there was a bitch, 10 in. The judge told the handler "Look at the little Am Bred." To me, that's a diss (fortunately she was recognized on the other days)

and not to mention that I would fear IF the standard was changed to "accommodate" the breeders, they would simply keep getting bigger and bigger.

This thread is more me ranting, but for the life of me I can't imagine WHY anyone would make such a bold statement and would want to do that. He DID say that he feels it's sad that a proper Westie isn't recognized anymore. But the fact that he said the standard should be modified if breeders are going to continue to breed out-of-standard, over sized Westies to make it proper makes me want to, I dunno... claw my eyes out

We have the opposite problem. For some reason our dogs are getting smaller and smaller in the states. Ideally the breed would be 8-10 lbs (though it's not strictly specified in the standard. Right now the dogs tend to be 6-7 lbs, mine included. Even Summer who is out of a 9 lb mother is only 6.7 lbs. Ours tend to go in cycles, it seems. Most breeders I know are trying to breed up in size though they're having some difficulty because big bitches still seem to be throwing small pups.

One thing that is evident in many breeds is that there are trends in style when it comes to the appearance of a breed from decade to decade. The rottweilers of the 80's to early 90's look very different than the rottweilers we are seeing these days. Part of this, I believe, has a lot to do with BYB's and breeding dogs that are not to standard. Popularity of a breed tends to drive this aspect. The other part of the equation , to me, seems to be each persons interpretation of that standard. The dogs that are winning in the ring are the ones that are bred on a large scale, hence the "Stud of the Moment" syndrome. There was a rottweiler stud dog here on the west coast that, by the owners account, was bred to some 300 b*tches in his lifetime. This one dog can be found in almost every pedigree, at least dogs here in the west. This one dog change the breed type both in a good way and in a bad way because of his frequency in the pedigrees.

In no way, do I think that a breed standard should be altered to fit the current style fads. We as responsible dog fanciers should strive to be fitting the standard not the other way around.

__________________"He is your friend, your partner, your defender, and your dog. You are his life, his love, and his leader. He will be yours, faithful and true, to the last beat of his heart. You owe it to him to be worthy of such devotion....." Author Unknown

the only time a breed standard should be changed is if the standard prevent the dog from being able to effectively perform it's original function. then it should be changed to recover the traits necessary to recover performance. for example the dane should have a squarer head, wider chest and top out at about 30" and the EBT should get rid of the roman nose in favor of a straight or mildly stopped profile and the dogs should look like mildly beefy terriers not a sausage w/legs. JMO and worth what you paid for it.

The UKC standard for the APBT changed recently. Or rather, is due to go into effect next month. It was changed specifically to weed out those dogs who have fallen prey to recent trends. (ie, the bullies) THAT is change I can agree with. I'm sure nobody foresaw 100 years ago that people would do this to the APBT.